103 MPH Fastball, Immaculate Innings, Michael Kopech is legit

Say whatever you want about Michael Kopech — because judging someone before you meet them is such a smart idea. But even for the haters out there, man, can he pitch.

Kopech hadn’t pitched in awhile as he was handed a 50-game suspension for some sort of substance no one had heard of. And a fight with a teammate in spring training left him with a broke hand, so he started his season on the Disabled List. Now, he’s back. And he’s like the Hess Trucks.

Kopech made his High-A debut on the seventh. And he did a lot of good things. He hurled four innings of one-hit ball, striking out six. But that does not say it all. One good outing is never enough to judge.

So what’s that mean? This immaculate inning you speak of. Think immaculate conception for a second and think what immaculate means. Then think of what an inning is. What’s the best inning possible? Nine pitches, three strikeouts. Yes.

Wow. That is good. No, it’s immaculate. That’s a word no one uses enough.

You wanna talk immaculate? Try watching Kopech throw in slow motion when he was in high school.

Before the season, Kopech was the Red Sox No. 5 prospect, according to MLB.com. He just missed MLB.com’s top 100 list. But then again, he’d probably be higher if it weren’t for the suspension. And if none of this stuff happened to him, he’d probably be in Double-A — just saying.

He’s 20 and a viable starting pitching prospect. He doesn’t have some of the clear-cut flaws some guys the Sox have raised have endured, so that’s a plus.